Portable clothes line unit



Dec. 23, 1958 GOODMAN 2,865,514

PORTABLE CLOTHES LINE UNIT Filed Aug. 23, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR em Ae 6000446 QrmQA/EV B. GOODMAN PORTABLE CLOTHES LINE UNIT Dec. 23, 1958 m 4 m 8 l 3 2 mw Rm a a mw Wfl u m mw w w ow m6 7 m e 9 mm A m. 8 A. m- .1 W 5 .8 B K /A PORTABLECLQTHES LINE UNIT Bayar Goodman, Los Angeles, Calif., assignor to Wilshire Manufacturing CompannLos Angeles, Caliii, a partnership- Application August 23,, 1954, Serial No; 451,414

17*Claims. (Cl; ZIP-119.15)

Thisdnvention;relatQSrtO-a-portable clothes line unit an more particularlyto a portable clothes line whichcanzbe woundupon adrurn for extension orretraction and which can, bejeasilyr mounted upon a supporting structure.

Previous; devicesof this nature have required complicatedilatching.devicesin order to tension the clothes line afterthe-clothes line' has been extended. Also, when these prior devices utilize more than one line, there has been nomeans in which to compensate for diflerences in the length of theindividual lines and for differences in tension onttheindividual'lines. By the present invention,

a pluralitypf lines can be mounted upon a single spring the lines'while they are being pulled from the'drum; the tension on all of the lines-will be maintained. The lines are placed in tension by the manual rotation of the drum by---asimplespivoted lever which has a pin that can be inserted intoany one of a number of openings in order tomaintain the drum in position to hold the lines in tension and it is only necessary to pivot this lever when it" is desired'to release the tension in the lines.

It is'therefore an object; of the present invention to providea portable clothesline unit having a plurality ofclothes'lineswound arounda spring biased drum which is-of simple and economical construction.

Another object of the presentinvention is to provide a portable clothes line unit in which a plurality of clothes lines are woundgupo-na spring biased drum and areconnectedtogether in pairsaround pulleys of an equalizer bar so that the tension oneach line can be maintained, and the lines will notbecome tangled on the drum.

Another object of the invention is toprovide a portable clothes line unit in which the individual clothes lines can be locked'in tension by a simple locking device.

A further object of the invention is to provide an equalizer bar to which all of the individual lines are secured around pulleys and so that the lines are connected together in pairs.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an equalizer bar which ispivotly mounted when the lines are in extended position so as to allow the tension on thellines to be equalized.

These and other objects of the invention, not specifically set forth abjove, will become readily apparentfrom the accompanying specification and drawings in which:

Fi'g. l' is a side elevational view of the portable clothes line unitillustrating the manner in which thedrum and" atent 2,865,514 Patented Dec. 23, 1 9.58:

ice

equalizer -bar are mounted in spaced apart relationship withgthe individual lines extending thereb'etween.

Fig, 2 ,.is a front 'elevational view along line2--2 of: Fig. 1 showing the opening in the housing for receiving the-equalizer bar when: in retracted postion.

Fig. 3,is,a horizontal.sectionialong line .3'-:3'0f Fig.2)

showing-the spring. biased drum connected tothe ten sioning lever- Fig. 4 is avertical 'sectional'view of line 4 -4'of Fig-. 3 illustrating: the pivotconstruction for the lever.

Fig.1 v5 is a vertical section along line 5'5 ofFi'g. 3 1 showing the mounting bracket for the-housing.

Fig; 6' is a top plan view of the drum illustrating thes manner in which the in'dividual lines are connected to gbetherin pairs aIoundpulleys carried by'the equalizer Fig. 7is a front elevational view similar to FigureZi showing the equalizer bar in retracted position and'parts" brokerr away to show the lines wound around the drum.

Fig. 8 is a top plan view of a modified form of the bracket to which the equalizer bar is attached.

Referring to Fig. 1, the clothes lines are shown extended between a housing unit 8 and-an equalizer bar 9. The equalizer bar has asingleopening 10- midway its:

length which receives-*a pin 11) carried by arm 11' of'a" bracket 12: The bracket 12 is secured to any suitable mounting post 13 by means of screws 14 so that the: equalizer-bar can be restrained when the desired tension is placed upon the individual clothes lines. Referring to. Fig. 3, thehousing'unit 8 has an outer casing 15 which.

receives at one end a projection 16 of 'endfitting 17 and the-casing can be secured in' any suitable manner, such. as-by screws, to'the projection 16. A shaft 18 projects. through fitting-17 and into collar 19 which has a circular, projection 19 for receiving one end of tube 20. A bolt" 20 passes through the shaft'18', collar 19 and tube 20. in order to rigidly secure these members together. The other end of shaft 18 locatedexteriorly of fitting 17 carries'a'pin-21'which bears against a stop screw 22 in order toposition theshaft 18. The outer casing 15 receives at its other end a'projection. 23 of end fitting 24 and the projection=23 is secured'to casing 15 by any well-known.

meansysuch as by screws. A shaft 25 projects through fitting 24'and into a collar 26 which is secured in the.

other'endof tube 20. A disc 27 has a hub 28 which is secured to shaft 25 by means of a roll pin 29 so that.

the disc 27mo-ves with shaft 25 which is free to rotate withinthe collar 26. The disc 27 alsohas a projection: 3llgwhich'surrounds the end of tubeZtl andcollar 26 and one end of spring 31 surrounds this projection. The end 'ofspring 31 is secured to projection 30 by means of screws 32 and 33 which pass between two coils ofthe spring at a position several coils from. the end of the spring. A'channel shaped bracket 34 spans the two coils,

one on each side of the screw 32, in order to help retain these coils in position and a lock washer 34', such as a star washer, is positionedbetween the bracket and the headof screw 32.

holding the end of the spring, andlock washers 40 and".

41" are placed between eachbracket and the screw head. Since the shaft 18 is prevented from rotating by stop In a similar manner, a channel shaped: bracket 35 spans the-two. coils, one on each side of; screw-33, in order to retain the coils in po-sitionrand a screw 22, it is apparent that the end of spring 31 secured tocollar19 will be fixed in position and that the spring 31 can be compressed by rotation of shaft 25 and projection 30. p

' Shaft 18 carries a disc 44 which is positioned within one end of a winding drum 45 and the winding drum is secured to the disc 44 by means of screws 46, which like- .wise serve to position clamp 47 on the winding drum. The other end of the drum receives disc 27 and is secured thereto by means of screws 48, which also serve to mount clampf50. The clamps 47 and 50 receive the initial two coils of lines 51 and 52, respectively, and serve to secure the ends of the lines to the drum. Similar clamps 53 and 54 are positioned at equal distances from clamps 47 and 50, respectively, and receive the two initial coils of lines 55 and 56. The coils received by the end clamps 47 and 50 are wound in a direction so that they approach the middle ofthe winding drum and the clamps 53 and 54Jare positioned approximately one-quarter of the length of the drum from each end so that the lines 55 and 56 can wind towards the center of the drum because of the direction in which the initial coils are wound.

p A lever arm 57 is pivotly mounted on the end of shaft 25 by means of a bolt 58 which has its head 59 passing through an opening in the hub 60 of the lever to compress a coil spring 60', positioned between the head and the shaft 25, when the other end of the screw is threaded into a lock nut 61. Thus, the bolt 58 serves as a pivot for the lever arm 57 and the force of spring 60 between the head 59 and shaft 25 serves to hold the lever in any tilted position. The diameter of hub 60 is sufliciently larger than the end of the shaft to permit pivotal movement of the lever. The lever has an arm 62 and an arm 63 carrying a pin 64 which is so positioned that it can be inserted into any one of a number of openings 65 in the fitting 24. It is apparent that when the lever 57 is rotated, the winding drum 45 will likewise be rotated since the disc 27 is secured to shaft 25 and the disc 44 is free to rotate upon shaft 18.

In order to support the housing unit 8, a pair of brackets 66 and 67 are secured to a supporting structure 68 by means of screw 69 and the face of each bracket is positioned away from the supporting structure by center flange 70 and side flanges 71. The upper end of the flange face containsan elevated portion 72 having a slit 73. Each of the end fittings 17 and 24 have a projection 74 carrying an end flange 75 and the projection 74 can be inserted into slit 73 so that the flange 75 is retained within the portion 72 of the bracket. Each end fitting also has aprojection 76 which bears against the face of the bracket in order to retain the housing unit 8 in upright position.

As illustrated in Figure 2, the housing has an opening 77 along its length in order to receive equalizer bar 9 when the bar is in its retracted position illustrated in Figure 7. The equalizer bar is substantially U-shaped in cross-section and carries four pulleys 79, 80, 81 and 82 which are pivotly mounted in the open side of the bar by pins 83 and are spaced apart in the same distances as clamps 47, 50, 53 and 54. The lines 52 and 56 pass around pulleys 82 and 83, respectively, and are tied together approximately midway of the pulleys so that their junction 84 will be positioned within the equalizer bar. In the same manner, lines 51 and 55 pass around pulley 79 and 80, respectively, and are tied together at point 85 which is located within the equalizer bar.

When the unit is placed in use, the housing unit 8 is supported upon its mounting 68 by the brackets 66 and 67 in the manner previously described and the equalizer bar is held within the opening 77 by the initial spring bias as on the drum 45. This initial spring bias is provided by biasing the spring 31 a given amount before the ends of the individual clothes lines are secured to the equalizer bar. Thus, the coil spring 31 exerts a force on the drum 45 in a direction to whether the equalizer bar is in opening 77 or whether it is extended. When the equalizer bar is not extended, the

wind up the individual clotheslines lever 57 will be in the position shown in Figure 7 wherein the pin 64 is drawn away from the end fitting 24. When it is desired to extend the clothes lines, the equalizer bar 9 will be pulled away from the housing unit a distance so that the opening 10 can receive the pin 10' of the bracket 12 and the individual lines will unwind from drum 45, thus rotating the drum to increase the spring bias on the drum caused by spring 31. In the extended and unextended positions of the equalizer bar, the spring 31'will continually place a torque upon rod 18 so that pin 21 will engage stop screw 22 and fix the end of the spring secured to collar 19. The force of the spring 31 opposing the withdrawal of the clothes lines is transmitted to drum through disc 27 and the lever 57 will revolve with disc 27 during withdrawal of the lines since it is secured theretO.

While the lines are being extended, the equalizer bar 9 is usually tilted at some angle to the housing unit illustratedby the phantom line position in Figure 6. Because of the fact that lines 51 and and lines 52 and 56 are connected together around pulleys in the equalizer bar, it is possibleto maintain the tension on all of these lines regardless of the tilted position of the bar since the connections 84 and 85 can move in one direction or the other to take up slack in any one of the lines. Thus, none of the lines can sag to result in tangling of the lines upon the drum 45. After the lines have been fully extended, the bar 9 is positioned so that opening 10 receives pin 10' and the bar is thus pivotly mounted by the pin. In order to apply increased tension to the lines so that they can support clothes and other items without excessive sagging, the lever 57 is manually rotated in order to rotate drum 45 in a direction to wind the lines upon the drum. After a suflicient tension has been produced, the lever 57 is tilted into the position illustrated in Figure 3 so that the pin 64 will enter the nearest opening 65 in fitting 24. Because of the fact that the coil spring is compressed between the screw head 59 and shaft 25, and because of the friction between the pin 64 and opening caused by the tension on the lines, the lever will remain in locked position. When it is desired to retract the clothes lines, it is only necessary'to tip the arm 63 of lever 57 in order to retract the pin 64 from one of the openings 65 and thus permit only the tension of spring 31 to act upon the lines.

During the time that the lines are-tensioned for supporting a load, if one of the lines receives a greater load than the other lines, this greater load will be distributed to the other lines because of the manner in'which the lines are attached to the equalizer bar. For instance, if line 51 had a considerably heavier load the tension in this line can be distributed to line 55 because of the fact that the two'lines are connected together at terminal 85. Also because of the fact that the equalizer bar is pivotly mounted by pin 10' the bar can pivot around the pin and distribute the greater load to lines 52 and 56. If the load is excessive on line 56, the load will be distributed between lines 52 and 56 and will also be transmitted to lines 52 and 56 because of the pivotal mounting of the bar. If each line were rigidly attached to the bar and the bar rigidly supported, this type of load distribution between the lines would not be possible. Referring to the mounting of the housing 8, it is unnecessary to have the arms 76 of end fittings 17 and 24 secured to the mounting brackets since the weight of the housing and all of the torque applied to the housing unit will be in a direction to force the end of arm 76 against the face of the bracket.

A modified bracket 12' is shown in Figure 8 secured than the other lines,

ing; 89 in order-topivotly mount theaequalizertbar. The.

mounted in thesame-position asshown in Figure. 1- for. bracket l2zby rotating the bracket:

bracket 12' can also. be

9.0. degrees; and utilizing; screws. to: securethe bracket to post In this. position, the pin 88. will be received Eyopening-QO in order to pivotablysupport the equalizer By the present invention, a novel portableclothes-line unit is provided in which tension is. continuallymaintained oneach ofthe. lines as the lines areunwound and in WhlCh the. excessive load onone line can be distributed to. thetother lines. Also, a novel locking device is provided which is simple in constructionandoperation andrequires no independent latching means. The method of l. A portable clothes line unit comprising a spring secured-at one end to a first endv member and at its other end. to a rotatable member, a winding drum secured to said. rotatable member for rotation therewith and having a plurality of the lines secured in spaced apart positions onits surface, said rotatable member being rotatably supported by a second-end member having a series ofopenings around a circular path concentric with the axis of said rotatable member, means for holding the ends of said, lines after being extended from said drum, and a lever pivotally connected to said rotatable member and havinga pin adapted for insertion into one of said openings upon said lever being tilted, said lever being rotated to tighten the lines and thereafter'tilted to lock the drum against rotation.

2. A portable clothes'line unit as defined in claim 1 wherein the .ends of said spring are secured-to said first end member and said rotatable member bya plurality of screw means passing between two coils of said spring located. several. coils .distant. from. each. end of the spring, and means. for holdingsaid. two coils-in position adjacent said screw meansr 3. A portableclothes.line-unit asdefined in claim 1 wherein, said rotatable. member.v comprises a shaft and said lever has an .enlarged. opening for receiving the end of said shaft, said. lever being pivotly mounted on the end of said, shaft by abolt andspringmeans: for exerting a force between the head. of said. boltand. saidshaft so that the lever will. be held .in anyttilted position bythe force between the bolt head and the shaft.

4. A portable clothes line unit as defined in claim 1 wherein said end members support a casing for the unit, each end member having a first projection carrying a flange, a bracket for each of said end members secured to a supporting structure, said bracket having a raised face portion containing a slit for receiving said first projection with the flange positioned within said raised portion, a second projection for each of said end members positioned below said first projection and bearing upon the face of each of said brackets when said unit is mounted upon said brackets.

5. A portable clothes line unit comprising a spring connected at one end to a fixed member and connected at the other end to a rotatable member, a winding drum rotatably mounted at one end on said fixed member and fixed at the other end to said rotatable member, a plurality of lines secured in spaced apart position on the surface of said drum, an equalizer bar carrying a series of pulleys equal in number to the number of lines and spaced apart the same distance as the lines on the drum,

62. each line passingaround one of said pulleys andbein'g; connected to an adjacent line substantially midway-between the pulleys for the two lines so that the tensionon all of said lines can be maintained regardlessof any tilting of the bar relative to the drum.

6. A portable clothes line unit'comprisinga winding drum carrying a plurality of clothes-lines, a rotatablymounted member secured to one end'of saidv drum andafixedly mounted 1 member rotatably'connected'to the: other endof said drum, a coiled spring mounted'with' said fixed member andsaid'rotatably mounted member" for biasing said'drum to rotate in one direction, the bias of said drum increasing as saidlines are'extended a tensioning lever receiving the end of said rotatably-* mounted member, said leverv having-areceiving opening' larger than the end of said rotatable memb'er so that the lever can pivot with respect to said end, spring -means" exerting a force between the head ofsaid-b'olt and-' said shaft so that the lever will'remain in any tilted position-. afixed member havinga series of openings arranged in-= acircular path concentric with the axis of said rotatablemember, and a pin carried by said lever for insertion into one of said openings after said lever has been rotated totension said lines. I

7. A locking device forretaining tension on extended lines secured to arotatable drum, said drum having a support member axially fixed in one end of said drumand a support member axially rotatably supported inthe other end'of said drum, biasing means interconnected with each of said support members for biasing said drumto rotate in one direction, support means for the firstmentioned, rotatably supporting the first-mentioned sup-- port member and second support means for fixedly mounting the second-mentioned support member, support means containing a series of openings concentric with the axis of said drum, a tiltable lever secured to said firstmentioned support member and a pin carried'byysaid- I lever for insertion into one of said openings after the lines have been tensioned by rotation of the lever.

8. A portable clothes line unit comprising a pluralityof lines secured in spaced apart position on a Winding drum, said winding drum having a support member axially fixed. in one end of said drum and a support member rotatably supported in the other end of said drum, biasing means interconnected with eachof said support members for biasing said drum to rotate in one direction, means connected with the first mentioned support member for rotating said drum and for locking said drum int any desired position, a bar having a pulley for each of said lines. with said pulleys spaced apart substantially thesame distance as the lines, each of said lines passing. around one of said pulleys and connected to-another'of" said lines at, a point between said pulleys so thattension Will be maintained on all of the lines regardless of the tilting of the bar as it is moved to extend the lines.

9. A portable clothes line unit comprising a coil spring secured at one end to a first end member fixed against rotation and at its other end to a rotatable member, a winding drum secured to said rotatable member for rotation therewith and having a plurality of lines secured in spaced apart position on its surface, said rotatable member being rotatably supported at one end by a second. end member and said drum being rotatably supported at its other end by said first end member, and means connected with said rotatable member for rotating said drum and for locking said drum in any desired position.

10. A portable clothes line unit comprising a rotatable drum, a rotatably mounted member secured to one end of said drum and a fixedly mounted member rotatably connected to the other end of said drum, a coiled spring interconnecting said rotatably mounted member with said fixedly mounted member for biasing said drum to rotate in one direction, a plurality of lines each having one end secured to said drum and the other end extendable from the drum, means for securing said lines in extended posiassure tion, means connected with said rotatably mounted member for rotating said drum to tighten said lines after said lines have been secured in extended position, and means for locking said rotating means after said lines have been tightened by said rotating means.

11. A portable clothes line unit as defined in claim 10, wherein said locking means comprises a stationary end member for rotatably supporting said rotatably mounted member and positioned adjacent said rotating means and having a series of spaced openings, and pin means carried by said rotating means and movable into locking engagement with one of the openings in said end member.

12. A portable clothes line unit comprising a first stationary end member, a rotatable member, a spring secured at one end to said first stationary end member and at its other end to said rotatable member, a winding drum secured to said rotatable member adjacent an end thereof and rotatably supported on said stationary end member adjacent the other end thereof, said drum carrying a plurality of lines, means for holding the lines in extended position, a lever pivoted to said rotatable member for tightening said lines after the lines have been extended, and means for locking said lever in position after said lines have been tightened, said spring means exerting a force on said drum to wind the lines upon the drum after the lines have been released from said holding means and the locking lever released.

13. In a portable clothes line unit, a single member for mounting a plurality of lines in spaced apart relationship, means for rotatably mounting said member, one end of each line being secured to said member and the other end of each line being extendable away from said member, and a second member carrying a pulley for each of said lines with said pulleys being spaced apart on said member, said other ends of two adjacent lines being joined together around an adjacent pair of pulleys to provide at least one integral pair of lines, the tension on said lines being maintained while said lines are being extended regardless of any tilting of said second member relative to the first-mentioned member.

14. In a portable clothes line unit as defined in claim 13, means for pivotally mounting said second member to hold said lines in extended position, said pulleys and said mounting means permitting the load on one line to be distributed among the other lines. I

15. A portable clothes line unit comprising a spring connected at one end to a fixed member and connected at the other end to a rotatable member, a winding drum rotatably mounted at one end on said fixed member and fixed at the other end to said rotatable member, a plurality of lines secured in spaced apart position on the surface of said drum, an equalizer bar carrying a series of pulleys equal in number to the number of lines and spaced apart the same distance as the lines on the drum, each line passing around one of said pulleys and being connected to an' adjacent-line substantially midway between the pulleys for the two lines, a support member mounted at a point remote from said drum, and means for pivotly mounting said equalizer bar on said support member when extended so that an excessive load on one line can be distributed to the other lines.

16. A portable clothes line unit comprising a spring connected at one end to a fixed member and connected at the other end to .a rotatable member, a winding drum rotatably mounted at one end on said fixed member and fixed at the other end to said rotatable member, a plurality of lines secured in spaced apart position on the surface of said drum, an equalizer bar carrying a series of pulleys equal in number to the number of lines and spaced apart the same distance as the lines on the drum, each line passing around one of said pulleys and being connected to an adjacent linesubstantially midway between the pulleys for the two lines, a casing surrounding said spring and said drum, said casing having an opening for receiving one side of said bar, and said drum being biased by said spring when said lines are in fully retracted position to hold said bar within said opening.

17. A portable clothes line unit comprising a plurality of lines secured in spaced apart position on a winding drum, said winding drum having a support member axially fixed in one end of said drum and a support mem ber rotatably supported in the other end of said drum, biasing means interconnected with each of said support members for biasing said drum to rotate in one direction,

. means connected with the first-mentioned support member for rotating said drum and for locking said drum in any desired position, a bar having a pulley for each of said lines with said pulleys spaced apart substantially the same distance as the lines, each of said lines passing around one of said pulleys and connected to another of said lines at a point between said pulleys, a support means fixed at a point remote from said drum, and means for pivotally mounting said bar with said support means whereby said bar can pivot sufliciently to equalize any excessive load on any one or more of the lines.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 730,868 Brown June 16, 1903 1,134,850 Hebert et al. Apr. 6, 1915 1,281,475 Anderson Oct. 15, 1918 1,513,445 Cohrs Oct. 28, 1924 1,740,899 Mooney Dec. 24, 1929 2,181,141 Lovegran Nov. 28, 1939 2,370,520 Bondel Feb. 27, 1945 2,481,638 Borup Sept. 13, 1949 2,578,374 Pratt Dec. 11, 1951 2,651,127 Rubin et a1. Sept. 8, 1953 

